By Yoon Ja-youngThe government will invest 5 trillion won in R&D for the service sector. Service businesses will get more tax benefits for their R&D investments. These are part of the measures to upgrade the country's service industry that is far behind manufacturing.At an economy-related ministers' meeting Wednesday, the government noted the country's service industry lacks a competitive edge despite each administration's pledge to nurture the sector. Its labor productivity falls far short of that of the manufacturing sector."While developed economies are nurturing new services such as the sharing economy, telemedicine and digital healthcare as new growth engines, Korea has been lagging behind in launching or developing innovative services," the government noted in a media release.As a result, most of the service jobs in the country are low-paying, though the service industry is about twice as effective in job creation compared with the manufacturing industry. The service industry here is mostly represented by small businesses such as restaurants and lodgings run by the self-employed, and they suffer from excessive competition.Behind the poor performance of the service sector is a lack of R&D investment. The ratio of service R&D to total R&D stood at only 8.7 percent in Korea's private sector, compared to 29.9 percent in the United States and 46.4 percent in France. The ratio of service in total government R&D also stood below 4 percent. According to the government plan, regulations will be eased on R&D investment by service businesses, so they can easily set up R&D institutes and get tax benefits. Newly introduced services such as the sharing economy will also enjoy tax benefits for R&D investments.The government will also invest around 5 trillion won for the next five years in service R&D. The areas of focus this year include smart media, smart homes, and technologies to overcome dementia as well as development of services for public safety. Businesses that succeed in developing new services will get loans by state-run financiers.The government also unveiled plans to innovate Centers for Creative Economy and Innovation. There are 17 of these centers around the country aimed at nurturing startups. These centers have their roots in the previous Park Geun-hye administration, but there has been criticism since it simply matched each center with a conglomerate, pressuring conglomerates to make contributions. Critics have pointed out the top-down measure doesn't fit startups where creativity matters most. The government announced each center will have more autonomy and open its doors wider for other partners such as local universities and successful small and medium companies or mid-tier companies. The centers will also be launching a Korean version of "TED Talks," providing diverse lectures or organizing forums for future entrepreneurs. They will search for promising startups, funding their R&D efforts.